Category Archives: Geology

Smithsonite – Day 17 of the Mineral Advent Calendar

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This holiday season, why not get a mineral every day instead of chocolate?! Today’s mineral is Smithsonite, find out more about it below….

If you hadn’t guessed yet, I really enjoy this time of year; the food, the sparkling lights, the music, the company and the bells! The jingle of sleigh bells is so ubiquitous at this time of year that you might think that you don’t hear them any other time, but good brass sleigh bells are still used on sleds and sleighs to make them audible o  dark winters nights in many parts of the world. And what a great sound they make!!

Yes sleigh bells are my text tone right now, which I guess might be driving my family a little crazy, but in order to have real brass sleigh bells you need zinc, and for that you need today’s mineral Smithsonite!

Lovely Smithsonite - this pink one is really pretty! The image is from The MinDat website, taken by Danny Jones.

Lovely Smithsonite – this pink one is really pretty! The image is from the MinDat website, taken by Danny Jones.

Smithsonite:
Chemical formula: ZnCO3
Colour: White, grey, yellow, green, blue, pink, purple, bluish grey, and brown.
System: Trigonal
Hardness (Mohs): 4 – 4½

Locations for Smithsonite from the MinDat Website.

Locations for Smithsonite from the MinDat Website.

Smithsonite is a mineral connected with the oxidisation of zinc, so you can find it in several locations in the UK – similar to copper, often in old industrial mining areas. But again, take care if searching for minerals near old mining locations, in case of unmarked shafts, or dangerous unstable surfaces.

For more information about Smithsonite please visit the MinDat website.

Talc – Day 16 of the Mineral Advent Calendar

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This holiday season, why not get a mineral every day instead of chocolate? Today’s mineral is Talc find out more about it below..

So now the party season is fully upon us, how many festive dinners have you got scheduled this year? I’m only going to three (apart from the big day) but one year I had ELEVEN!! That was a lot of seasonal parties!!!!! If you are going out to a party tonight (as I am – staff party here we come!) then you will probably be thinking about looking your best, and if you are like me that means sparkles! I also like a bit of shimmer in my make-up, but did you know that your make-up probably includes some of the mineral talc?

A bit of sparkle goes a long way at this time of year and shimmery make-up just helps it along!

A bit of sparkle goes a long way at this time of year and shimmery make-up just helps it along!

Talc has been used in make-up for years, but since the recent resurgeance of mineral make-up talc is becoming a more obvious ingredient. It is actually pretty good in make-up as it is not harsh on your skin and smooths the make-up on. If you are anything like me you are very familiar with talc from when you were a kid, my mum would use if for anything from patting you down after the bath to getting swimming caps on (yes I did look like a ghost afterwards, but it didn’t hurt!). So the talc in your seasonal make-up is today’s mineral advent!

This is a gorgeous picture of a talc crystal from the MinDat Website.

This is a gorgeous picture of a talc crystal from the MinDat website.

Talc:
Chemical formula: Mg3(Si4O10)(OH)2
Colour: Colorless, white,  sometimes it can be pale green, bright emerald-green to dark green, brown or gray.
System: Triclinic
Hardness (Mohs): 1 (if you are a geologist you should know this – it’s the standard!)
Can you find it in the UK? Yes

Locations you can find Talc in the UK according to the MinDat website

Locations you can find Talc in the UK according to the MinDat website

You can find Talc in the UK, it is often found in large masses in or near rocks that are metamorphic (aka altered by heat and/or pressure). As these kinds of rocks can be located far from civilisation be careful if going hunting for talc!

For more information about Talc please visit the MinDat website.

Copper – Day 15 of the Mineral Advent Calendar

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This holiday season, why not get a mineral every day instead of chocolate? Today’s mineral is Copper find out more about it below..

It’s the 15th of December and you know what that means… THERE ARE ONLY 10 MORE DAYS UNTIL CHRISTMAS!!!!! So an important question remains to be asked. Have you got your Christmas lights up yet?

Are your Christmas lights up yet? They should be by now!

Are your Christmas lights up yet? They should be by now!

You should do, and if you do by now your house shold be strung with copper. Copper?! I hear you say? Yes, copper, it’s the wire that helps your lights sparkle so gorgeously! So today’s mineral for the advent is copper! And not only is it a mineral, but a metal too – a really important one.

Gorgrous Copper!

Gorgrous Copper!

Copper:
Chemical formula: Cu
Colour: Copper-red. Tarnishes to black or green in air.
System: Isoclinic
Hardness (Mohs): 2½ – 3
Can you find it in the UK? Yes

There are many locations you can find copper across the UK! Map is from the MinDat website.

There are many locations you can find copper across the UK! Map is from the MinDat website.

You can find Copper in the UK, in fact up until a few decades ago it was commercially mined in this country. Check out locations across the southwest, Devon and Cornwall in particular, the northwest and Scotland for some prime copper hunting locations! However, if you end up in one of these locations be careful in any sites that could have old mining structures – they might not always be marked!

For more information about Copper please visit the MinDat website.

Spodumene – Day 14 of the Mineral Advent Calendar

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This holiday season, why not get a mineral every day instead of chocolate? Today’s mineral is Spodumene find out more about it below..

So you spent the weekend searching the shops for that perfect gift, or wrapping and decorating presents to go under the tree. But there is one thing that you should not forget to buy before the big day and that is batteries. There is NOTHING more frustrating than getting an awesome toy or gadget as a gift and not being able to play with it RIGHT AWAY! So whether you are buying for yourself or a loved one, adult or child, make sure you are all stocked up on batteries!

Uh oh - looks like I'm running low on batteries!!

Uh oh – looks like I’m running low on batteries!!

But in order to make those essential items function you need lithium – you probably knew that already, as many battery manufacturers make a big deal about their lithium batteries and how long they last, but you probably didn’t know that you get lithium from a beautiful mineral called Spodumene. Spodumene comes in several different colours and when gem quality is often given other names, like Kunzite. This often happens to some minerals to make it seem like there is more diversity than there actually is, so beware of new exciting names for gemstones – some of them are even made up by the retailers!!

This is a lovely pinkish coloured crystal of Spodumene and if gem quality, could be called Kunzite as well. Image is from Wikipedia.

This is a lovely pinkish coloured crystal of Spodumene and, if gem quality, could be called Kunzite as well. Image is from Wikipedia.

Spodumene:
Chemical formula: LiAlSi2O6
Colour: Colourless, yellow, light green, emerald-green, pink to violet, purple, white, gray
System: Monoclinic
Hardness (Mohs): 6½ – 7
Can you find it in the UK? Yes

The location of Spodumene mineral in the UK according to the MinDat Website.

The location of Spodumene mineral in the UK according to the MinDat Website.

You can find Spodumene in the UK, but it is pretty rare, in fact only one location (in Devon) is registered on the MinDat website. If you know of any others, as always, please let me know in the comments!

For more information about Spodumene please visit the MinDat website.

Sphalerite – Day 13 of the Mineral Advent Calendar

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This holiday season, why not get a mineral every day instead of chocolate? Today’s mineral is Sphalerite find out more about it below..

As we move towards the 25th of December, the number of shopping days decreases – and you might be out searching for the perfect gift! If you decide you want a more modern gift than yesterday’s Uranium Glass, you might decide to get a fancy new touchscreen device, but they are dependant on a lot of minerals, metals and elements to make them work!

There are lots of different touchscreen devices now - but they all need indium! Image is from wikipedia.

There are lots of different touchscreen devices now – but they all need indium! Image is from wikipedia.

One of the most important of these is a rare earth element (REE) called Indium, which you can find in the zinc ore mineral, Sphalerite. This is part of the same group of economically important elements as Neodymium (from Day 2 – Monazite) Without sphalerite (and therefore indium) your touchscreen device would just be another phone or computer!

A geogrous Sphalerite photo taken by Chinellato Matteo from Chinellatophoto.com, avaliable on the MinDat website.

A geogrous Sphalerite photo taken by Chinellato Matteo from Chinellatophoto.com, avaliable on the MinDat website.

Sphalerite:
Chemical formula: ZnS
Colour: Yellow, light to dark brown, black, red-brown, colourless, light blue. green
System: Isometric
Hardness (Mohs): 3½ – 4
Can you find it in the UK? Yes

The locations you can find Sphalerite in the UK.

The locations you can find Sphalerite in the UK.

You can find Sphalerite in several locations in the UK, across Scotland, England and Wales, including two of the most popular areas to find minerals of all types, Cornwall and Cumbria. Perhaps if you are still struggling for a gift you could take a loved one on a mineral hunting trip to one of these locations – I’m sure they would love it! Just ask my family!

I guess even my family can't be excited by rocks and fossils ALL the time!

I guess even my family can’t be excited by rocks and fossils ALL the time!

On second thoughts maybe don’t ask my family…..!

For more information about Sphalerite please visit the MinDat website.